Frontwave Credit Union is headquartered in Oceanside and is the 54th largest credit union in the state of California. It is also the 360th largest credit union in the nation. It was established in 1952 and as of December of 2021, it had grown to 264 employees and 117,291 members at 14 locations. Frontwave Credit Union's CD rates are 3X the national average, and it has an A health rating.
Field of Membership Restrictions
Frontwave Credit Union is open to those who live, work, or worship in the California counties of Riverside, San Bernadino, or San Diego. Immediate family members of current Frontwave Credit Union members also qualify.
See current membership details
Satisfied Customer
I have belonged to a different credit union and had an account at US BANK at different times. The credit union started out great for many years but then slipped into the same unhelpful money grubbing with fees as the bank. I'm now with Frontwave and what a breath of fresh air. Always well staffed with cheerful, nice employees. If you have a question or problem they take care of it. There are almost nonexistent fees. So glad I changed to them for my banking
A great local credit union
Back when I used to live in California, they had a branch out in Barstow, CA. It was an extremely big building and welcoming. It was also very professional looking, though they had more tellers than necessary at most times. The staff would always greet you with a smile and if you had an issue with filling out paperwork they were happy to help or send me to the appropriate department. I wasn't sure what the tellers were capable of since I was young, but they're very nice to those new to banking. The interest rates for just about anything beat the major banks out there. The one thing they were a decade behind on was an online presence. It looks like they've improved upon that since I was last with them. Their branch is only available in California, but I strongly recommend them. If they are not available to you, they recommended us to fairwinds when we moved and their services are equal. That includes fees for things like an inactive debit card, not meeting your monthly minimum deposit, etc. Either way, it's a good place.
Member Privacy Data Compromised
Frontwave used to have a published Privacy Policy which explicitly stated that they do not share member's privacy data with any third parties, period. Without notice, they started providing member privacy data (name, address, DOB, etc) to a third party life insurance company, which commenced sending solicitations by "Presort Standard" mail (also known as "Bulk" mail or "Junk" mail). These mailed solicitations included member privacy data including name, address, DOB, etc. This was a breach of their published Privacy Policy in effect. I brought this to the attention of their entire management staff including President/CEO, Supervisory Committee, and Board of Directors to no avail. They seem to be either woefully ignorant of privacy laws and requirements, locked in a state of denial, or callously disrespectful of Privacy expectations regarding their members.
You Can't Afford This....
This could be really bad if you're fixed / low income, this is your only bank or you can't afford to write of bad experiences.
They started off good but then our ATM cards didn't work and couldn't log on online. Why? They changed the system. They said they had mailed us a letter. We had to take a day off from work to try to fix this, then the wise-guy who demanded he be the one to fix it really screwed things up worse. The bank manager's assistant fixed it (and was nice), after which we got the letter. We used another bank to pay our debtors. This bank didn't even pay the late fees that were their fault.
Then they started miscounting funds, then repeatedly depositing funds in the wrong account, followed by charging LOTS of overdraft fees before there was even an overdraft. Eventually the overdraft charges themselves caused an overdraft situation in one account.
We've ceased using the accounts in this credit union just to see if they'll continue charging late fees and to let any valid transactions clear If the fees continue, we'll go to Department of Corporations or whomever sends bank examiners to audit these problems.
We might keep this as an emergency ATM card account but that's all we're willing to risk now.
Guantanamo Bay Banking
San Marcos, CA
8/14/2010 As of 2009, Gitmo Bay banking run by military jarheads who have issues with civilians. Enter, wait at least 15 min. even if 5 staff are not helping any other person. Must remove all headgear. Must remove sunglasses, you terrorist suspects. Present preprinted deposit slip supplicating to make deposit. Repeat name. Repeat address. Repeat telephone number, all verbally to teller. This "proves" your identity, or that identity thieves can READ. These are on the bank's own slip already yet. Say that you have not changed your address, verbally, from that of the slip. Ditto. Provide password. ONLY THEN can you potential terrorists/thieves present cash or checks as inbound tickets. Every other bank in America, anyone can DEPOSIT to anyone's account, of themselves or others, by giving pre-existing account # and name--nothing is leaving the institution, after all. It does not take half an hour and interrogation. I shudder to think about attempting a withdrawal, an armed marine would probably have to supervise your every step.
Data as of Q4 2021
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| NCUA # | 68494 |
| Year Chartered | 1952 |
| Employees | 264 |
| Primary Regulator | |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 0.71% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 6.88% |
| Annual Interest Income | $31.7MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q4 2021vs Q4 2020 | $1.18B$1.08B |
| Loans | Q4 2021vs Q4 2020 | $636.1MM$648.1MM |
| Deposits | Q4 2021vs Q4 2020 | $1.04B$941.3MM |
| Equity Capital | Q4 2021vs Q4 2020 | $121.6MM$121.0MM |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q4 2021vs Q4 2020 | $4.1MM$6.6MM |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q4 2021vs Q4 2020 | $2.2MM$1.7MM |
| Real Estate Owned | Q4 2021vs Q4 2020 | $0$0 |
